9 Nov 2011
In September I started my 101 project. It's fairly slow progress at the moment, but one of the things on my list - #41 "See 25 Live Gigs" is well under way, and I'm really just posting this to use as a placeholder for my progress through the 25, and to keep track of who, what and where I've seen live music.
29 Sept 2011
Cloud Control made all sorts of noises tonight in the tight Audio club on the Brighton seafront. The Australian band's first record Bliss Release has been out for well over a year, but the 4-piece still appear to have a lot of fun banging out track after track off it. Despite a few technical hitches, the band outperformed my expectations and showed they're worthy new indie kids on the block.
15 May 2011
The Great Escape festival descended on Brighton this weekend. The festival, now in its 5th year, has grown rapidly and is now considered to be one of the best festivals for new music in Europe. I attended for the first time this year and was thoroughly impressed.
22 Dec 2010
On Saturday 11th December at Brixton Academy, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club performed their 1000th show since forming in 2001. And they were flawless.
8 Dec 2010
I saw Ratatat at the weekend, and, like a lot of artists in my music collection, they are a band I know due to a couple of songs I discovered by them years back. Ratatat were supporting Vampire Weekend at the Brighton Centre last week (who I'll get onto shortly), and as much as I enjoyed Vampire Weekend, it was Ratatat who left me yearning for me. Luckily, I managed to get hold of last minute tickets to see the twosome performing again a few days later at a much more intimate venue. I was not disappointed.
4 Nov 2010
I write this on the train back to Brighton from London after an evening being entertained by funky blues rockers The Black Keys. I can't say I was overly keen on the duo before tonight, having only heard a handful of songs. And even now, with their latest album Brothers sounding in my ears, on record I can't say I'm particularly enamoured with them. Live, on the other hand they're a different ballgame.
11 Sept 2010
I went to see The Mountain Goats at Koko in London last week, and after my last disappointment when photographing live music, I decided I would definitely try to get some snaps. Having recently purchased an iPhone, I decided I'd put the camera through its paces.
31 Jul 2010
I've just finished watching the live feed of biffy's headline set at the iTunes festival and as much as i love the music the band produce, they lack something live.
9 Jun 2010
If you're a Strokes fan you may have noticed the strong rumour floating around the Internet yesterday that the band will be playing a secret gig in London under the guise 'Venison'. The band haven't really been around since releasing their 3rd album First Impressions of Earth in 2006 but have reportedly been back in the studio recently and are touring around the world in the upcoming months. I still regret not getting tickets for the Isle of Wight Festival this weekend, where the band will be headlining.
29 Apr 2010
As a follow-up to my previous post urging you to experience Black Rebel Motorcycle Club live, I was eager to learn the band has announced more dates at the end of the year. If you're even slightly in to this band, I urge you, book some tickets! You can do so from tomorrow (30th April). If you want to join me, I'll be booking up tickets for the London show at the Brixton Academy on the 11th December.
25 Apr 2010
Wow! Do these guys put on a show! On Friday night I went to see Black Rebel Motorcycle Club at the HMV forum in London. I wouldn't say I was a huge fan of this band prior to the event, but nevertheless I was looking forward to seeing some decent live music. Blown away would be an understatement! However good a band sounds recorded, they're really not worth their name in salt if they don't perform well live. Let me tell you, if you haven't heard or seen this band live, they were undisputedly born to play live.
31 Aug 2009
I love the Kings of Leon. They’re easily my most played artist and they have an immense sound live. Which is why I was disappointed to hear about their performance at Reading. From what I’ve heard, they had a bit of an uninspiring set and somewhat of a meltdown at the end (expensive guitars were smashed). Apparently the same thing happened at T in the Park earlier in the summer. In my opinion it’s probably a mix of a long tour and becoming a little too Rockstar. But I sympathise...